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NEWS LETTER 2 0 1 0
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The Competition Board Decided that Several Chicken
Producers and the Association of White Meat Producers and
Breeders Union Distorted Competition by Establishing a Cartel
and thereby Sentenced them to Pay Fines
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The Competition Board (hereinafter referred to as the “Board”), at
its discretion, sentenced nine leading undertakings, namely Abalıoğlu,
Banvit, Beypi, CP, Erpiliç, Keskinoğlu, Pak Tavuk, Şeker Piliç and Şen
Piliç to pay a fine of 0.8% of their gross income as accrued at the end
of the year 2008. Moreover, the Board had increased the fine of Pak
Tavuk depending on Zuhal Daştan’s- president of Association of White
Meat Producers and Breeders Union (hereinafter referred to as the “Besd-
Bir”) and president of Pak Tavuk- decisive influence on the violation and
warned Besd-Bir to abstain from behaviors which lend themselves to anti-
competitive practices.
I. Allegations
The Board has,
ex officio,
made an investigation into the alleged
agreements between 27 chicken producers which are restricting the amount
of supply and fixing prices, and into the allegations regarding Besd-Bir’s
enabling of such agreements.
II. Cartel inspection
In light of the documents found at the premises and informationobtained
from the parties as a result of the investigation, the Board determined that
some of the undertakings (i) agreed on increasing chicken prices, (ii)
engaged in activities to restrict the amount of supply, (iii) tried to increase
the transparency in the market by sharing confidential information and
future price lists with each other, and (iv) tried to restrict the production of
other chicken producers by suggesting their dealers make agreements with
dealers of other producers. In addition, the Board reached the conclusion
that Besd-Bir had acted in a way that enables such anti-competitive
practices and the coordination between the relevant undertakings.
The Board stated that these actions by the undertakings are examples
of a “cartel” within the scope of the Competition Law. The methods which
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Article of April 2010